Calender roller stop mechanism



y 1969 J. A. DIXON, JR

CALENDER ROLLER STOP MECHANISM Filed Sept. 19. 1967 III] INVENTOR; JAMES A.D|xoN,Ja

ATTOR United States Patent US. Cl. 19.23 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A calender roller stop mechanism in which a pair of driven rollers are yieldingly biased for movement toward one another and between which a strand of textile sliver is fed. Specifically, the mechanism is characterized by an arrangement responsive to a predetermined excess sliver thickness for disconnecting the rollers from the driving source, in combination with a pivoted bar concurrently operable to latch the rollers in the disconnected position.

This invention relates to fiber preparation machinery and its subject matter is a continuation-in-part of my copending patent application Ser. No. 616,666, filed Feb. 16, 1967, now Pat. No. 3,391,427. More particularly, the invention relates to calendar feed roller assemblies employed on coiler heads, carding engines, draw frames, combers and similar fiber strand processing apparatus, in combination with mechanism for preventing damage resulting from excessive strand thickness between the rollers.

Conventional calender feed roller assemblies for use on coiler heads (see Patent Nos. 2,656,573 and 2,876,- 502) are usually composed of a pair of positively driven interconnected rollers which yieldingly grip a sliver or other fiber strand therebetween and which permit the passage of a certain range of strand thicknesses. Other roller assemblies, such as shown in Patent No. 3,216,063, further provide strand feelers at the intake and delivery sides of the assembly to actuate a stop motion when the strand breaks or has an excessive thickness along its length. Although such prior art assemblies have limited satisfactory applications, such assemblies are structurally complex and space consuming.

The present invention comprises an assembly of the class described in which the rollers are yieldingly biased toward one another and protected from operational damage by unique latching and clutch mechanisms. When an excess strand of thickness spreads the rollers a given amount, the latching mechanism prevents their return to operative position immediately following the disconnection of the rollers from the driving source by the clutch mechanism.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a simple compact roller assembly as described above and which overcomes the disadvantages of prior art constructions.

It is another object of invention to provide a roller assembly in which the rollers are yieldingly biased toward one another to grip a fiber strand therebetween, in combination with a latching mechanism responsive to excessive roller spread for holding the rollers in spread position.

It is still another object of invention to provide a roller assembly of the type described which has a pinion clutch between the rollers and the driving source, which clutch is responsive to said excess roller spread to stop rotation of the rollers only.

It is a further object of invention to provide a calender roller assembly which is simple and compact in construction, efiicient in operation, economical to manufacture, and adapted for installation on conventional textile fiber processing machines with relative ease.

Some of the objects of invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which,

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a textile coiler head, partially in section, showing the present invention and taken along the line 11 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 22 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional detail view taken along line 3--3 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional detail view taken along line 44 in FIGURE 1, showing the pinion clutch in boldline engaged and in dotted-line disengaged positions;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 in FIGURE 1, showing the calender rollers held in spaced relation by a latching mechanism and in positions corresponding to the dotted-line positions shown in FIGURE 4, and

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view similar to FIGURE 5, but showing a modified form of latching mechanism which is normally urged toward latching mechanism by a spring.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 denotes a pedestal or column of a conventional sliver coiler having a coiler head, broadly designated by reference character 11, secured to the upper end thereof by means of a bracket 12. The head 11 comprises an apertured horizontally disposed spectacle plate 13 having a tube gear plate 14 rotatably mounted therein, said plates being flush-bottom and disposed above a removable sliver-receiving can 21.

Plate 14 has integral therewith a peripheral gear 15 which meshes with a pinion 16 fixedly secured as at 16a upon the upper end of a vertically disposed drive shaft 17. A spindle 18 extends upwardly from the central portion of gear plate 14 and along the axis of rotation of the latter, the upper end of said spindle being apertured for the reception of the upper end of a downwardly and outwardly inclined tube 19. The lower end of tube 19 communicates with an orifice 20 disposed in and eccentrically of rotatably mounted gear plate 14. As the gear plate rotates, a strand of sliver 22 travels downwardly in a well-known manner through trumpet 54, between rollers 30 and 40, through tube 19 and into can 21.

A tube gear cover 23 is pivotally secured as at 24 to bracket 12. Similarly, a calender roller cover 25 is also pivotally secured as at 24 to said bracket.

A calender roller assembly, broadly designated by reference character 26, is mounted upon cover 23 by means such as bolts 27. The assembly comprises a base portion 28 having integral therewith a bearing 28a in which is rotatably mounted a shaft 29, said shaft having a calender roller 30 fixedly secured as at 30a on one of its ends and a sleeved pinion 31 loosely mounted on its opposite end (FIGURES 2 and 3). A bevelled gear 32 is fixedly secured as at 32a to the sleeve of pinion 31, the gear 32 meshing with a bevelled gear 35 secured as at 3511 upon the drive shaft 17.

Pivotally secured to base plate 28 as at 37 is a bearing 38 in which a shaft 39 is rotatably mounted, said shaft being substantially parallel to shaft 29. A calendar roller 40 is fixedly secured as at 40a on one end of shaft 39 and a pinion 41 is fixedly secured as at 41a on the opposite end. The pinion 41 meshes with the pinion 31 on rotatably mounted upon shaft 29, the pinion also meshing with a pinion 43 fixedly secured as at 43a upon the latter shaft. In FIGURES 2 and 3, it will be observed that a washer 44, preferably made of hard plastic, is mounted upon shaft 29 to separate pinions 31 and 43.

By mounting gear 32, pinion 31 and pinion 43 in coaxial relationship and by causing pinion 41 to mesh with both pinions 31 and 43, a very compact pinion clutch is provided in proximity to the calender rollers 30 and 40. Moreover, this compact arrangement facilitates disengagement of the pinion clutch and the latching of the rollers in spread position when excessive fiber thickness passes between the rollers.

The rotation of drive shaft 17 will impart rotation to feed rollers 30 and 40 and to their respective supporting shafts 29 and 39 through intermeshing gears or pinions 35, 32, 31, 41 and 43 which are serially connected in the order named. During the rotation of rollers 30 and 40, the pinion 31 will rotate in a counterclockwise direction (FIGURE 4) to thereby rotate pinion 41 in an opposite direction, during which the torque in the driving connection will normally tend to bodily rotate roller 40 toward roller 30 and bearing 38 toward bearing 28a to releasably hold pinion 41 in mesh with pinions 31 and 43. Also, the weight of members 39, 40 and 41 will supplement the torque to hold the pinions 31, 41 and 43 in mesh.

When the compressed thickness of fiber between rollers 30 and 40 exceeds the intermeshing depth of the teeth of pinions 31, 41 and 43, both of the rollers are disconnected from the driving source and immediately thereafter are latched in spread position by latching mechanism broadly designated by reference character 45.

Specifically, the latching mechanism 45 comprises a weighted latch bar 46 having its lighter end pivotally secured as at 47 to the upper portion of fixed bearing 28a, in combination with an abutment, protuberance or boss 48 integral with the upper portion of pivoted bearing 38. The boss is adapted to slidably support the free weighted end of bar 46 when the rollers are being driven from the driving source.

When excessive fiber thickness passes between rollers 30 and 40, there is a thickness sufficient to cause the pinion clutch to become disengaged, the free end of bar 46 will fall from the bold-line position shown in FIGURE 4 to that shown in FIGURE at which time the rollers will be held in spaced inoperative position.

FIGURE 6 shows a slightly modified form of latching mechanism wherein a latch 46a is pivoted intermediate its ends as at 47 to the stationary support 28a therebelow, said bar being normally biased toward latching position by means of compression spring 51.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated in the drawings and specific terms are employed in the specification to describe it. Any such specific terms, however, are used in a generic sense and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a calendar roller assembly, the combination of a pair of rollers for gripping a strand of textile sliver; means for yieldingly pressing one of said rollers toward the other; means for rotating said rollers to longitudinally advance said gripped strand; means responsive to the advancement of a predetermined excess strand thickness between said rollers for latching the latter apart a distance at least equal to said excess thickness; a clutch disposed between said rotating means and said rollers; means responsive to said excess strand thickness for disengaging said clutch, said clutch comprising an axially alined pinion connected to one of said rollers, a second axially alined pinion connected to the other of said rollers and meshable with said first pinion, and a third pinion axially alined with one of the aforesaid pinions and meshable with the other pinion; and a fixed bearing for supporting one of said rollers and a pivotally mounted bearing for supporting the other, said pivotally mounted bearing having a protuberance thereon and said latching means including a bar pivotally secured to said fixed bearing and having the free end thereof latchably engageable with the protuberance of said pivotally mounted bearing.

2. A calendar roller assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said pivotally secured bar is rotatable in one direction to latched position concurrently with the rotation of said pivoted bearing in the opposite direction.

3. A calender roller assembly as defined in claim 1 and further comprising spring means for biasing said latching means toward engaging position.

4. In a calender roller assembly, the combination of a pair of rollers for gripping a strand of textile sliver; means for yieldingly pressing one of said rollers toward the other; means for rotating said rollers to longitudinally advance said gripped strand; means responsive to the advancement of a predetermined excess strand thickness between said rollers for latching the latter apart a distance at least equal to said excess thickness; the axes of said rollers being disposed in substantially horizontal parallel relationship; and a fixed bearing for supporting one of said rollers and a second bearing for supporting the other, said second bearing being pivotally mounted at a point disposed below and laterally of said roller axes whereby gravity will tend to bodily swing the second bearing and its supported roller toward the first bearing and its supported roller, respectively, said latching means including a bar pivotally secured to one of said bearings and having the free end thereof latchably engageable with a radially disposed portion on the other of said bearings.

5. A calender roller assembly as defined in claim 4 wherein said pivotally secured latching means is rotatable in one direction to latched position in response to the r0- tation of said pivoted bearing in an opposite direction.

6. A calender roller assembly as defined in claim 4 wherein said bar is pivotally secured to said fixed bearing and has a free end thereof latchably cngageable with said pivotally mounted bearings.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 572,433 12/1896 Meats et a1 19159 2,780,841 12/1957 Berker 19159 2,799,056 7/1957 Carmichael 19-.26

DORSEY NEWTON, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 19-159 

